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Accipiters
The Accipiters are a valiant Codex-Compliant Chapter from the fabled 23rd 'Sentinel' Founding, from the lineage of Corvus Corax. This Chapter is known for their exploits against the xenos horrors and Chaos strongholds of Segmentum Tempestus. This millennia-long crusade awarded the Accipiters with many accolades and culminated in receiving the Feral World of Henst as a recruiting world in early M41 for their efforts, in addition to their official homeworld of Sedonus. While the Accipiters abide by the edicts of the ''Codex Astartes'', penned by Roboute Guilliman, the Chapter has a particular love for using ranged weaponry and luring in an enemy to a deadly ambush with Assault Marines. This tactic has proved to be quite effective when operating against Orks and their greatest enemy, traitor Astartes. During the latter years of M41 the Accipiters were famously embroiled in a long war against the vicious Chaos Warband, the Forsworn. The heretic Astartes had long been a threat to Imperial vessels travelling through the westward regions of Tempestus, and the Accipiters were committed to driving the Slaanesh-worshipping pirates out of the area and make shipping and transport lanes much more safer, and that victory earned them grudging respect among their brother Chapters of Tempestus. History Formed in late years of the 37th Millennium, the Accipiters were charged with the protection of Imperial worlds in the Segmentum Tempestus, which were under constant assault by alien and heretic alike. Having such a distant relationship with their recruiting world, the Chapter’s fleet-based nature allowed it to deploy across the Segmentum whenever needed,many times with each Company going to separate battle-zones in the Orpheus, Spartus, and Uhulis Sectors dealing with greenskin hordes, Dark Eldar pirates, and Chaos uprisings. With each company facing such large enemy forces alone, they all resolved to be as Corvus of old, and be the blade that strikes suddenly and deadly. The Accipiters’ use of devastating ambushes and guerrilla tactics proved to be a true ally in their battles and they saw success across Tempestus, while also suffering regrettable casualties attributed to the youth of their Chapter. Over the following years, the Accipiters grew very well accustomed to their adopted stratagem and tactics and become heroes to the countless Agri and Hive worlds saved from their merciless attacks from the shadows. Notable Campaigns War of Ghosts (893-953.M41) '-' '''For many thousands of years the name, “the Forsworn,” conjured fear and unease in many soldiers of the Imperial Navy, and for good reason. For the captain unlucky enough to see alabaster vessels adorned with a sigil of a great eye was not likely to ever reach their destination. In 893.M41 the Accipiters were ordered to chase down and eliminate the traitorous threat to the Imperium’s vital space lanes, and the Chapter eagerly accepted the directive. The honor of hunting down the Forsworn was taken by then chapter master, Lord Indral Anderus, with the 1st and 6th Companies under his command. The hunt for the Forsworn began in the Caradryan Sector, as the Accipiters swept through the void waited for a distress signal that could be the result of the Warband’s presence. Surely, after months of remaining on edge, ready to engage at a moments’ notice, Indral’s force consisting of the Battle-Barge Whisper of Wrath and the 6th Company’s frigate, Tempered Sword, as well as a few other smaller vessels found themselves responding to a Forsworn attack. They came upon an Imperial Navy cruiser beset by the enemy Warband’s ambush, and was already being boarded. Knowing that most of his brothers would be at an extreme disadvantage attacking the majority of the Forsworn who now were on the cruiser, and had nigh-perfected ship-to-ship combat, Indral ordered the 6th Company to board the Forsworn ships that had deposited most of their marines into the Navy cruiser, while he and the elite 1st Company saved the cruiser itself and cut the head of the snake by slaying the ambush commander leading the attack on the cruiser. After heavy fighting on all fronts, the 6th Company managed to destroy the Forsworn’s ships and left the large boarding party stranded, with the claws and assault cannons of the Accipiters 1st Company. Himself being an expert in hand-to-hand, as expected of an officer of his Chapter, Indral slew dozens of heretical marines with his deadly lightning claws as he scoured the ship for every last traitor and showed them the Emperor’s wrath for their crimes. After the day was won, the Accipiters escorted the battered Navy cruiser to the closest port as a sort of apology for arriving so late to the battle. But the Forsworn were far from defeated, and Indral had but destroyed one pack of the Warband. The next encounter the Accipiters would have with the Forsworn occurred five years after the previous, but this time the 2nd Company under Captain Raynerus was attacked during the purgation of an ork-controlled world in the Chiros Sector, named Olmov. Caught off-guard by the sudden appearance of the Chaos Marines, much of the 2nd Company was slain, including Raynerus himself. Enraged by his captain and mentor's sacrifice, a marine named Percival Felfyre took up Raynerus' bolter loaded with Inferno Bolts and fired relentlessly at the traitors. The Forsworn were long ago blessed with a merged consciousness through their gene-seed, and when one of their number was set on fire from within, every last one of them felt the same pain. Crippled momentarily, Percival was able to slay dozens of the writhing Chaos Marines and rallied his brothers to a Pyrrhic victory not only on the Forsworn, but the Orks of Olmov. The final battle of the so-called "War of Ghosts," was when four entire Companies of the Accipiters assembled and began to siege an asteroid-turned fortress used as a staging post for Forsworn raiding parties. Named Theoprae by the Heretic Astartes calling it home, the Lord Indral saw the cesspit station as key to achieving his mission and thus the Accipiters' Battle Companies launched a surprise attack from all directions, the goal to completely destroy Theoprae. But the defenses lining the asteroid were quite deadly, and the Forsworn's dedication to perfecting the art of killing had those defenses used to great effect. Knowing that somewhere inside Theoprae there might be a Sorceror or a low-level psyker that might send a signal to the rest of their Warband in the Warp, Indral organized a strike force to enter the station and deliver a high-ordnance warhead inside, as shooting a missile directly could spell it being shot down by gun batteries. Arriving through torpedoes, Indral's contingent bloodily fought through the warped and menacing insides of Theoprae to find a suitable location to set off their bomb. When the group found such a spot, they were reduced drastically in number. And while arming the warhead, Indral bravely gave his life so that the mission would succeed, and the payload detonated, destroying Theoprae entirely but at the cost of the Accipiters' beloved Chapter Master. Now, a statue of Indral Anderus stands proudly in the Chapter's Fortress Monastery, a testament to the Accipiters dedication to their duty, to Emperor and Imperium. '''Leyak Reinforcement (957.M41) - Upon receiving communications from their brother Chapter, the Warriors Tempest, requesting reinforcement to patrol the Leyak Sector after reports of Dark Eldar raiding parties in the Sector, the Accipiters seconded three Tactical Squads from the 6th Company, led by the young Apothecary Aegir. The next solar year, only Aegir and five of his brothers returned to their Chapter alive. Ambush at Indoria (962.M41) - Heeding a call for aid from the beleaguered 22nd Gothoran Imperial Guard Regiment, the Accipiters' 4th Company made landfall on the Agri World of Indoria to find the Regiment absolutely decimated. Shortly after, the 4th Company was suddenly attacked by strange Chaos Marines, appearing to be Forsworn. But these Forsworn screamed praises to Chaos Undivided, rather than Slaanesh. Taken completely by surprise, many Accipiters died as Captain Alaras ordered a quick retreat back to their ships. More than half of the 4th Company was slain fighting off the new Forsworn from their extraction zone, and most of the progenoid glands could not be recovered. Captain Alaras swore an oath of vengeance against their nemesis Warband. Invasion of Hive Fleet Cobra (975.M41) '''- Eventually a tendril of the Great Devourer had invaded the outlying worlds of the Haxan Sector, a portion of Tempestus that was liberated and founded after the Dark Marches Crusade. This particular Tyranid Hive Fleet, dubbed "Cobra" due to a vapid mutant strain of extremely venomous garbs and fangs sported by the Tyranids of the Fleet, was poised to consume the entire Sector, but the Accipiters took joined many of their brother Chapters in the duty of dealing with the aliens alongside the heroic Imperial Guard marshaled to defend Haxan. All of the Accipiters' battle companies had assembled under order of the Lord Mathurin, the Chapter Master. For weeks the Accipiters studied the Tyranids as they used the teachings of Corvus Corax to assassinate key and imposing genomes among the xenos ranks, extracting genetic material, used by the Chapter's Apothecaries to tailor a weapon to use effectively against the Tyranids. But as the Hive Fleet then massed toward the Sector Capital, there was little time left for such care, and the Accipiters deployed to fight Cobra. The battle was hard fought, and many battle-brothers gave their lives to fight off the unending hordes, but the 1st Company managed to slay the Hive Tyrant after grievous casualties, with Mathurin holding the creature's head to the sky and cried out, "Shadow take you," to the retreating Tyranids as Battlefleet Haxan and the Accipiters' own fleet tore into Cobra's living ships in orbit. With this victory, the Accipiters won the favor of the Sector and the accompanying glories. Chapter Organization The Accipiters follow the edicts of the Codex Astartes, thus arranging their Chapter into the standard ten companies, the 1st comprised of Veterans, 2nd-5th being the battle companies, 6th-9th the reserves, and finally the 10th scout company. While the Accipiters adhere to the work of Roboute Guilliman, as a later Founding Chapter, they often prefer to eschew its battle strategies in favor of their own. Chapter Recruitment The Hive World of Sedonus is a heavily industrialized planet, with cities sprawled all across its surface. Like all Hive Worlds, it can be extremely dangerous to live and survive with underworld gangs, food riots, and the everyday struggle to live in such an environment. However, for an unknown reason, there are a great many vigilantes that appear to attack the gangs that all but rule the Underhives, and these vigilantes if they are effective are prime recruits for the Accipiters that collect neophytes from Sedonus. The highest quality that the Chapter's Chaplains are keen to look for in potential recruits are the ability to strike fast and hard, with maximum damage caused. Like the Raven Guard, the Chaplains of the Accipiters will soar and stalk through the Hives of Sedonus and watch the potential neophyte operate, and if they pass their "tests," the Chaplain will then abduct the human and bring him to the hidden lunar Fortress Monastery of Hawk's Sepulcher. The Accipiters' hidden Fortress Monastery, situated on Sedonus' moon, Sion, is where young Accipiters are trained and instructed in the Chapter's lore and history. Most of Hawk's Sepulcher itself is buried deep below the surface of Sion, and there is speculation that indeed much of the small moon insides are hollowed out and used by the Accipiters, though for what use is one of the Chapter's closest secrets. While the Accipiters' main fiefdom for new neophytes is the world of Sedonus, they have also been granted rights to a Feral World in a nearby system to their own. Officially named Henst, the planet's savage inhabitants have become adepts of seeing without being seen, and striking quick and deadly. Perfect for the Accipiters to recruit from, the Chapter built a Chapter Keep on a desolate island, unreachable by the wild populace. Occasionally, the stationed Chaplain will venture out into the forests and jungles of Henst and will return with a bounty of promising initiates, offered by the humans mistaking the skull-faced giant for an otherworldly spirit. Chapter Combat Doctrine The Accipiters follow the guidelines of the Codex Astartes and organize their Chapter accordingly, with ten standard companies and four battle-line companies of Tactical, Assault, and Devastator Marines in even portion. However, the Chapter has been noted for sporting two disparate ways of war, defensive and offensive. When charged with defense, the Accipiters are trained how to fight using the terrain of almost every battlefield possible, and make full use of the environment's advantages and disadvantages against the enemy. Conversely, when attacking the foe directly, the Accipiters are relentless and hardly remain stationary, as to not grant the enemy the benefit of having a fixed location of their forces and will use their expertise to rapidly attack from a position of strength with hail of bolter-fire or chainsword slashes. Chapter Culture Due to a combination of their previous lives before their rebirth as Astartes and with their favored tactics, the Accipiters are described by some as ill-mannered and sometimes as insolent. The brothers of the Chapter have honed their very speech to goad their foes into making mistakes and this oft translates to off-the-battlefield chatter, perhaps without realization. This is especially the case with the recruits of Sedonus, who are former vigilantes fighting gangs and underworld groups. As a result, other more prideful Adeptus Astartes chapters think of the Accipiters as brash, relying on trickery and ambushes to claim victory. Deathwatch Service To serve in the Long Vigil of the Ordo Xenos is seen as one of the highest honors the brothers of the Accipiters can attain, to fight against the very worse that the alien menace can spawn against Mankind. Thusly, the Chapter is always quick to send Veteran personnel to the Deathwatch when petitioned, and sometimes without having been requested for a battle-brother or two. Those that have been called to the nearest Watch-Station have reportedly served with valor and zeal, garnering honor to their Chapter. Notable Members * '''Indral Anderus - A hero whose name is still invoked to this day, the direct predecessor of the current Chapter Master, Mathurin, Indral Anderus was a true tactician that fought directly with his brothers on Jump-Packs, cleaving alien and traitor with his dreaded pair of Lightning Claws. It was Indral that pledged the Accipiters to war against the Forsworn, and even if it claimed his life to destroy the Warband's major staging ground for their accursed fleet, his legacy lives on with total dedication to the Emperor's service. * Mathurin - The current Sparrow Lord (Chapter Master) of the Accipiters, Mathurin was among the first Feral humans to be drawn from the world of Henst and conscripted into the Chapter. Time and time again, he has proven that he and his brothers of similar beginnings are equal to those from the depths of Sedonus. Famed for leading the 3rd Company throughout the War of Ghosts, Mathurin was chosen to follow in Indral's footsteps and lead the entire Accipiters Chapter. And during his command, he has displayed an almost fanatical hatred for the Heretic, and has shown no mercy when persecuting wars against the armies of the traitor, as if to rightfully avenge his former master. Chapter Relics * Hawk's Talons - After the heroic sacrifice of Lord Indral Anderus to destroy the Theoprae Station, the Accipiters' Techmarines crafted a pair of Lightning Claws shaped after the talons of a bird of prey, modeled after Indral's own favored weapons of choice. Due to the pure carnage made possible with the Talons, the current Chapter Master, Sparrow Lord Mathurin, has wielded the weapons since he ascended to Indral's position some time after his sacrifice. * Cobrascorn - Gifted to the Accipiters by an Ecclesiarchal Cardinal after saving his retinue during the battle for the Haxan Sector against the Tyranid Hive Fleet Cobra, the dubbed 'Cobrascorn' is a vicious and thrice-sanctified Eviscerator, a two-handed chainblade capable of inflicting horrendous damage to any foe made of flesh and even those not. * Tempest Plate - An artifact procured in a friendly exchange of relics between the Accipiters and the Warriors Tempest, the Tempest Plate is a suit of Terminator Armor of artificer make, produced to offer a much wider range of movement than regular Indomitus Pattern, a quirk that has proved quite effective when taken into battle by the Accipiters' 2nd Captain Aethir. Chapter Appearance Chapter Colours The Accipiters Chapter primarily wears black Power Armour with a black backpack. The arms, shoulder plates and helmet are blue-grey. The Aquila or Imperialis on the chest armour is dark red. The white squad specialty symbol (Tactical, Assault, Devastator or Veteran) is indicated on the right shoulder guard. The squad iconography on the right knee guard indicates squad number. Company number is indicated by a white Roman numeral centered on the left knee guard. Chapter Specialists have the blue-grey portions of their Power Armour replaced with their Codex associated color, Librarians with blue, Techmarines red etc. Chapter Badge The Accipiters' Chapter badge is a white Imperial eagle icon with its wings displayed and elevated on a field of blue-grey. Trivia The Accipiters are an officially recognized canon-lore Space Marine Chapter of unknown Founding and origin. Almost nothing is know about this Chapter in Imperial records. For more information, you may read the original article [[:w:c:warhammer40k:Accipiters|'here']]. Accipiter is a genus of birds of prey in the family Accipitridae. Most species in the genus are called goshawks or sparrowhawks, although all New World species of the genus are simply known as "hawks." Category:Space Marines Category:Space Marine Chapters Category:Raven Guard Successors Category:Graythorne Category:23rd Founding Category:Imperium